


Strawberries and Cream

by emothy



Category: Kamen Rider Drive
Genre: Cake, F/M, Hospitals, Kissing, Love Confessions, Other, Robot/Human Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-02
Updated: 2015-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-18 17:09:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4713884
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emothy/pseuds/emothy
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chase visits Kiriko in the hospital with traditional recuperation gifts, and offers a confession. Set during ep44 but in no way canon compliant. Also some brief, brief mentions of the pure love between a man and his belt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Strawberries and Cream

**Author's Note:**

> _Fuck you, Drive writers, you can't make me ship Shinnosuke/Kiriko and you can't stop me shipping Chase/Kiriko. I was dreaming about a beautiful hospital confession scene the moment I saw Chase, Kiriko and that strawberry cake, and nobody can take this away from me, it happened, the end._

-

Chase sets the flowers he had brought as a gift down on the table at Kiriko's bedside, making sure they're perfectly spaced and neat in their vase. 

"They're beautiful, thank you so much Chase," she says warmly. 

"I recalled this human convention from when I was convalescing in your care," Chase informs her. "There was something... Comforting about the flowers."

"Oh, I know what you mean!" Kiriko assures him, nodding and smiling widely. "When you're cooped up inside one small room for an entire day - or longer - you really start to miss the great outdoors, and nature!" She gestures to the flowers, "this brings it to you, a little."

"I see," Chase says, walking around the bed to take a seat at Kiriko's side. "I believe you are right. The first thing I did when I left the sanctuary you had made for me was reconvene with nature. I needed to be somewhere calm and still in order to think." 

"I'm sorry that was such a confusing time for you," Kiriko says softly. "But I'm very glad you're here now." 

"I am not glad that your injuries required hospitalisation," Chase replies. "But I believe you meant 'here' in the broader sense of aiding the Special Crimes Division, and in that respect I too am glad to be here." _With you particularly,_ a little voice in Chase's head adds. It has been doing so for a long while now, injecting sudden commentary on Kiriko's existence and Chase's enjoyment of it. It's one of the ways Chase came to the conclusion that he was in love with her; his constant thinking of her, or relating events and objects to her even when she wasn't anywhere nearby. 

"That's what I meant," Kiriko agrees with a little grin. She looks at the other gift Chase had brought for her. "Oh, is this cake? You shouldn't have!"

"Would you like me to remove it?" Chase asks worriedly. He had been so certain humans liked cake. Often it is used a celebratory foodstuff, but also frequently as an indulgence or comfort item. It had seemed appropriate for this situation. 

"No, no!" Kiriko insists, opening the box in a hurry as though she's worried Chase really will take it away from her. "That's just something humans say when a generous gesture has been made and they feel that accepting would be too greedy! It's to express appreciation. It doesn't really mean you shouldn't have."

"I see," Chase says, although he doesn't. Why can't humans just say what they mean? 

"'Thank you' is what I should have said," Kiriko amends. Her cheeks are a little pink. She scoops up a big chunk of cake with her fork to keep her occupied and doesn't quite open her mouth wide enough to take it all in. A blob of cream smears on her upper lip. Chase finds it strangely captivating. 

"It's delicious! ...Chase?" Kiriko asks. He quickly looks up to meet her eyes. "Have you ever tried cake before?"

"I do not require food in order to fuel this body."

"But _could_ you eat using your human body?" Kiriko presses. "Do you have taste buds?" 

"I believe so," Chase says. "I experience the other senses, such as smell and touch."

"Oh, of course!" Kiriko agrees. "You really have to try this, then!"

She leans forward with a forkful of cake and offers it to him. Chase is too surprised to resist, his mouth forming an 'o' that Kiriko slips the bite of cake into easily. He closes his mouth and chews automatically. The cake is a strawberry shortcake, made of a base called sponge, and it's as soft and squishy as the kind used for bathing, but infinitely more tasty. He bites into a strawberry in the middle of his bite of cake and suddenly his mouth is flooded with a juicy sharp sweetness. He's still processing all the flavours and textures when Kiriko speaks. 

"You have, uhm, some cream right here-" she says, leaning forward to touch the corner of Chase's mouth and wipe it away. She seems to realise how bold she's being the moment her skin makes contact with his, hesitating to actually remove the cream now that she's touching him. 

"You do too," Chase admits. It seems only right to reach out in turn to wipe away the cream on Kiriko's face. He brushes his thumb gently across her lip and notices how heavily her breath is coming out as she stares at him and he looks back at her. 

"This does not seem the opportune moment to tell you-" Chase admits as Kiriko's hand falls away from his face uselessly, "-what I was going to talk to you about on the rooftop yesterday, but you can not have a more troubling reaction than Shinnosuke."

Shinnosuke hadn't quite supported him, which had been worrisome. 

_"It's not that I don't believe in your feelings for Kiriko!" He had said. "But it's never been done before! A robot and a human. I don't know! ...And Kiriko, really, are you sure? I mean, have you seen her wolf down ramen?!"_

Chase hadn't understood what was to be considered undesirable about Kiriko's fast and incredibly efficient manner of refuelling herself. He himself found it endearing. And if she did not rush she would not get into situations like the one just now with the cream on her lip, which would be rather unfortunate. 

"What were you going to tell me?" Kiriko asks, gulping in anticipation. She surely realises that if Shinnosuke had had an undesired reaction that it might be something she would not find agreeable either. 

Chase would rather know either way then be left wondering. 

"I'm in love with you," he says simply. 

Kiriko goes even pinker than before. She ducks her head and looks up at Chase through her lashes. It's not a troubling reaction. It's attractive, the way she seems to be shy about the prospect. 

"With me?" She asks. Chase nods seriously. "You have developed love feelings, and they're for me?"

"Is this unusual?" Chase asks. "I believe you are a highly attractive mate, in more ways than physical appearance." 

"Oh Chase," Kiriko says softly, but she's smiling. "I just hadn't dared hope! I didn't think you would develop those sort of feelings after knowing me so briefly, even though I did for you after not very long at all!"

"You are in love with me also?"

"Mmmm," Kiriko says, nodding quite emphatically. "I didn't want to tell you in case it influenced you in any way!"

"That is sensible," Chase agrees. "Shinnosuke had led me to believe that by being a Roidmude our situation was possibly too unusual to warrant an agreeable outcome." 

Kiriko leans in and says conspiratorially, "don't listen to Shinnosuke about matters of the heart. He and Krim are still tiptoeing around their feelings for one another-" Kiriko starts chucking, "-or Krim _would_ be if he still had toes!" 

"Gou also-" 

"Don't listen to Gou, either," Kiriko says dismissively. "He's yet to fall in love at all, not to mention his biased attitude towards Roidmudes! I've always told you not to take his feelings personally, haven't I?" 

"I cannot give you children-" Chase points out, but then Kiriko's mouth is on his, and once he's past the surprise of the act he closes his eyes and allows himself to enjoy the softness of Kiriko's lips, along with the firm confidence of her kiss. He opens his mouth willingly to taste more of her. As a result of eating the cake her kiss is flavoured like strawberries and cream. 

"I'm not thinking about children right now!" Kiriko says breathlessly once she's parted from Chase. She seems to have wanted to impress the sincerity of her words using her lips. "That's a long way away, and if we ever want children there are all kinds of options!" She strokes Chase's cheek. "Right now I just want to think about you being in love with me, me being in love with you, and," she blushes but doesn't hesitate, smiling broadly- "a lot more kissing!" 

Smiling isn't a common response of Chase's, but his mouth does quirk upwards at one end when Kiriko suggests more kissing; that's an incredibly enticing prospect. She's looking at him with those wide eyes of hers that are always full of care and possibility, her long hair framing them beautifully. Chase reaches up to touch it; even though it doesn't need moving out of her eyes he follows the line of her hair from her forehead to down by her ear. She shivers, and then she has her hand clasped around the back of his neck to pull his mouth to hers again. Chase goes to her willingly. 

He ends up crawling onto the hospital bed. Kiriko shoves the tray table out of their way as Chase's hands make contact with the sheets, and she reclines, fingers twisted hard into the leather of his jacket to get enough of a grip to bring him with her. Her hands move to his butt so fast he can't help but wonder how long she's been waiting to do that. Then they squeeze and he kisses her harder to make his approval known. 

The next noise either of them hears other than the approving gasps and panting sounds between them is a scream. Shinnosuke and Gou are at the door to Kiriko's hospital room.

"We were... just coming to see if you were feeling alright," Shinnosuke says dumbly. Gou doesn't say anything at all, just stares and stares and stares like his eyes are going to pop out of his head. 

"I feel great," Kiriko assures them both with a beaming smile. Even Chase manages a small closed-mouth upturn of his lips in their direction; he's the one responsible for Kiriko's improved state of well-being and he's proud of that. "So you can go now, if you'd like," Kiriko adds. It doesn't sound much like a suggestion.

"Yeah, bye!" Gou yelps and flees the room without looking back. Shinnosuke opens his mouth, then closes it, then opens it again. He is behaving a lot like the fish Chase has seen in aquariums before. 

"There's nothing to worry about, Tomari-san," Kiriko says. "Sometimes people who love one another can be together regardless of differences, don't you think?"

She's making a reference to Krim. Shinnosuke may not be clear about this, but when Chase opens his mouth to pass on this information to him Kiriko shushes him. It seems she wishes for Shinnosuke to come to this conclusion himself. 

The bewilderment on his face as he exits does not bode well. 

"It was unusual for Gou not to have more to say on this subject," Chase says.

"Oh, he will," Kiriko replies. "I'll get a lecture later, probably. He'll just wait until we're not actively kissing because it makes him uncomfortable."

"Do you wish to have this lecture?"

"No," Kiriko says, looking amused that Chase would think she might enjoy that. Some people do. 

"Shall I stay indefinitely, then?" Chase asks. "And continue to kiss you?"

Kiriko's smile is enough of an answer. 

-


End file.
